Coliseum Mall Work Almost Over

Grand Reopening Events To Be Held

October 05, 1989|By NEIL CORNISH Staff Writer

HAMPTON — In a dimly lit room made over to look like a sanitized version of Rick's bar from "Casablanca," Coliseum Mall officials gathered Wednesday to celebrate the near-completion of the mall's $10 million renovation.

Since January, shoppers and work crews have shared the mall. Now that the work is almost complete, grand re-opening celebrations are planned for the end of this month and the first week in November.

Work crews have replaced the worn, orange and red floor tiles with marble floors. Nine new skylights containing 7,000 square feet of glass have been installed. The movie theaters are gone. A food court has been added. Trees and hanging plants decorate the interior.

"It's a necessity to update this mall," said Anne Marie Haverkamp, mall marketing director. "You can't compete in this market with new malls and strip centers in driving distance" if your mall is dated, she said.

Coliseum Mall opened in October 1973. Sixteen years of wear and tear left it plagued by poor lighting and a rundown appearance, while newer shopping areas such as Newmarket North Mall and Patrick Henry Mall had offered competition up on the Peninsula.

Despite the nine months of construction, which at times required scaffolding that obscured store fronts, "we have not lost our loyal customers," Haverkamp said. Any drop-off during the heavy construction periods was minimal and hardly felt by stores, she said.

Although most renovation has been completed, construction of the 12-tenant food court is likely to continue for a few weeks. T.R. McCubbin, tenant coordinator for the project, said about half the shops are still under construction.

Mall officials hope that most of the court, to be called "The Food Place," will be complete by the end of this month.